


Gracious

by westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist



Category: The West Wing
Genre: Episode Tag, Episode: s04e05 Debate Camp
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2003-04-26
Updated: 2003-04-26
Packaged: 2019-05-31 03:34:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15110939
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist/pseuds/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist
Summary: 'I never said it out loud, but I *did* tell them so.'





	Gracious

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

**Gracious**  
**by:** Kasey

**Character(s):** Sam  
**Category(s):** POST-EP: Debate Camp  
**Rating:** TEEN  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own them, please don't sue.  
**Summary:** "I never said it out loud, but I *did* tell them so."  


I did tell them so. 

I never said it out loud, but I *did* tell them so. I told them it would be best to just remove his name from consideration before it became a full-blown thing. 

Actually, I told them not to make Rooker our guy in the first place. But by the time I said it, it was a little late to stop the nomination because let's face it, once you've asked the guy it's kinda hard to go back and say "No thanks, we're not gonna nominate you." 

Not that it's easy to say "Sorry, but we need you to step down as nominee" either, but I'm saying...at least once you've started there's a concrete reason, usually, or there was in that case. Usually in the pre-nomination set it's...speculation and confirmation probability that governs the nominee, not a specific incident...unless that incident affects their confirmation probability. 

When I make this much sense, it's almost no wonder they don't really listen to me. 

But when you think about it...that was the beginning of the end. Or maybe-... well I guess they listened to me on the campaign. As much I expected them to, sometimes more which was great. The Inaugural address had a lot of my ideas and my phrases in there, as did a lot of the campaign speeches, and having come from Gage Whitney where they didn't listen to *anything* I had to say...it seemed like a lot. 

Maybe it's just that my standards have changed. Maybe what I used to consider being 'in' on things is now what I think of as being not really listened to. 

But I told them so. I told them not to make Rooker our nominee. 

They didn't listen. And it hurt them. 

As did...a number of other things I said that would've saved trouble in the end had they listened to me, but they didn't want to hear what I had to say. 

I wasn't smug. I even said to Josh that more often than not in the future he would be right and I would not be, I was everything a gracious winner should be, especially considering that by that time the victory wasn't sweet because we had screwed ourselves pretty good. I wasn't smug, and I never said "I told you so," like the President says I did. 

But I did tell them so. 


End file.
